After co-owner/head pastry chef Katy Gerdes’ stint on “Project Runway,” it’s no wonder sweets coming out of Angel Food Bakery & Donut Bar (86 Ninth St. S., Minneapolis; 612-238-1435; angelfoodmn.com) are as artfully presented as they are tasty, given her eye for design.

With the recent unveiling of a second location — this one at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (Concourse E) — we chat with Gerdes, 36, about how Angel Food came to be and what’s ahead.

What’s your first food memory? My first one is not great. It was when my parents forced me to eat Brussels sprouts. When I was 5 or 6 years old, my parents would start that thing where you couldn’t leave the table until you finished your vegetables. I hated it at the time, but now it’s funny because I’ve grown to love Brussels sprouts.

What did you want to be when you grew up? I didn’t grow up with anybody who baked. Somewhere around 10 years old, I just remember it was summer school break and I was kind of bored and I decided I wanted to try baking. I was going to make a cheesecake and asked my mom to get the stuff for it. She said, “Why don’t you start with something easier.” But I made cheesecake, and it turned out pretty good. From there, I started making something every week, all summer.

What was your first job in food? My first job was at Whole Foods in Uptown, when it first opened. I needed a summer job and I got a job cashiering at the bakery there. The first day I worked there, I asked if I could be a baker instead. They transferred me and I got to be an assistant baker. That was pretty cool. I was probably around 16, 17 years old.

How did you wind up in the food business for good? I’ve done the fashion-design route via working for Target and being a contestant on “Project Runway.” I loved the design aspect, but I didn’t really care much for the fashion industry — maybe my personality doesn’t really fit that world.

I really liked baking, and I had a bunch of jobs baking and as a pastry assistant. My family runs Hell’s Kitchen. I had been working for Cupcake when they relocated Hell’s Kitchen to another downtown space. Before, Hell’s Kitchen was serving just breakfast and lunch. When they moved to the new location, it included dinner, late-night and bar menus. They decided they would need a dessert menu and pastries. My stepdad Mitch Omar had worked with me previously and he offered me the job. Years later, we ran out of room in the kitchen because Hell’s Kitchen was growing so much. I jokingly said we should open in another space so I could have a kitchen crew. Then a year later, in 2012, we opened Angel Food.

What’s your favorite item on the Angel Food menu right now? I really like our soft pretzels. They definitely have a cult following, but I don’t think many people know we have it. I really like sugar, so don’t get me wrong on that — but I like that it is not a sweet option. They’re jumbo and soft, almost a German Bavarian style, but not quite. We do a classic sea salt pretzel and other varieties as well.

What’s the last thing you baked at home? I have no idea. I literally don’t even have sugar in my house. I don’t have anything to bake with at home — it all went to the bakery. And it’s always hard to go from some place where you have everything you would need and then you’re at home and don’t have a pan, don’t have a whisk, don’t have a mixer.

If you could eat or drink only five things for the rest of your life, what would they be? Tacos for sure. Cookies are my easy sweet treat so I would probably keep those around. Water. I drink a lot of water and definitely can’t go without it. Probably eggs — that’s a big part of my diet. Cheese. I have to have cheese. A good cheese plate is the best meal ever.

What’s next? Right now I’m really focused on the new airport location. It’s a really awesome space and a cool bakery and we’re getting that right team in place and getting things up and running smoothly and making sure it keeps up with our standards for quality.

Then downtown, we’d really like to increase doing weddings and events because we have this whole side of our downtown bakery that has fantastic catering options. We do a lot — around 200 weddings a year — but could do a lot more. We just haven’t really promoted it. That will be our big push over the next few years.

Nancy Ngo is a Minnesota Native who grew up reading the Pioneer Press, so it’s fitting that she would one day work for them. She is a three time Society of Professional Journalists Page One Award winner. Before covering food and lifestyle, she has previously covered government and public safety. She has served on boards including the Asian American Journalists Association and The University of Minnesota’s The School of Journalism and Mass Communication Alumni Society Board.

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